Emergency Management

Vision

The Polk County Emergency Management Office seeks to promote safer, less vulnerable communities with the capacity to cope with hazards and disasters.

Mission

Our Mission is to help protect communities by coordinating and integrating all activities necessary to build, sustain, and improve the capability to mitigate against, prepare for, respond to, and recover from threatened or actual natural disasters, acts of terrorism, or other man-made disasters.

2023 Winter Hazard AwarenWinter Hazard Awareness Weekess Week

To help Minnesota residents minimize the risks of winter, the Minnesota Department of Public Safety sponsors Winter Hazard Awareness Week each fall in collaboration with the National Weather Service and other state, federal, and non-profit agencies.  

The event includes a media campaign, website promotion, and social media posts. The week-long effort provides information that can be used with school, church, or civic programs.

Weekly Topics

Monday, Nov. 13: Winter Storms

Tuesday, Nov. 14: Outdoor Winter Safety

Wednesday, Nov. 15: Winter Fire Safety

Thursday, Nov. 16: Indoor Winter Safety

Friday, Nov. 17: Winter Driving

Initial Damage Assessment (IDA) Reports

Polk County Emergency Management is now accepting Initial Damage Assessment (IDA) reports for expenses incurred from any flood-related damages that impacted your jurisdiction after April 11th, 2023.   

All local government and public entities claiming to have flood-related costs and/or damages should submit an IDA report to the Polk County Emergency Management Department as soon as possible. The submitted IDA reports will be utilized by local, state, and federal officials to determine if the disaster-related expenses could qualify for any State and/or Federal assistance.

Examples of the types of expenses and/or damages to document on the IDA reports would be any type of emergency protective measures, debris removal, damages to public roads, bridges, water control facilities, buildings, equipment, and utilities.

Delaying and/or not submitting your jurisdiction’s disaster-related costs and/or damages could make your organization ineligible for obtaining any State and/or Federal assistance. All the Initial Damage Assessment reports need to be submitted to the Polk County Emergency Management Department by May 15, 2023.

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